Compact Camera News

Starting with the 2014 CES trade show, held at the turn of the year, and continuing through press time for this issue, we’ve seen a goodly number of new products come to the fore. All this is only the start—this being a photokina year we’ll see a whole new round of products, including CMOS-sensor medium formats, with prices to match, coming our way. I trust that this report will give you a good sense of what’s here and what’s coming down the pike. So, here are my quick picks of those products that caught my eye, plus a snapshot of some of the trends.

The WG-5 GPS (the newest "adventure-proof" camera from Ricoh Imaging) is the latest addition in the WG series. This waterproof camera is equipped with new features including a new Underwater mode and enhanced Interval Shooting settings (that allow multiple images to be taken over a pre-set time in both Still and Video modes), in an easy to hold, non-slip body.

Ricoh Imaging Americas Corporation (Ricoh Imaging) has announced the newest camera in its GR series, the RICOH GR II, a premium compact camera with Wi-Fi and Near Field Communication (NFC) functionality. Ricoh claims the GR II, which uses an APS-C-sized 16.2-megapixel CMOS sensor, is “the smallest premium compact with DSLR image quality” on the market.

Ricoh is the creator of the original Theta camera, a fully 360-degree, spherical imaging device that allows users to capture everything around them at the push of a button. The company just introduced a new version of the odd-shaped camera that features video capability and four fun new colors: pink, blue, yellow and white.

Your photographic journey may lead you from snow-covered mountaintops to lonely forests and the dark depths of the ocean. No matter where you find yourself, the RICOH WG-M1 was designed to be the ideal companion for any rugged outdoor adventure. This lightweight digital camera is easy to use (featuring large control buttons) and was built to function in a variety of extreme environments. 

I recently received a ruggedized WG-50 compact camera from Ricoh and immediately embarked upon a challenging, thorny photographic adventure—the likes of which you can’t imagine. I emerged with just a few scratches—although it does look like I’ve lost some blood. I can’t reveal the location of this treacherous place for fear that others might be tempted to defy this danger—but I can tell you this much: it’s no bed of roses.

Nikon COOLPIX L830
The COOLPIX L830 is an ergonomically designed high-ratio zoom camera with a 3” high-resolution tilt LCD monitor. It features a 34x optical zoom range plus a 68x Dynamic Fine Zoom (an enhanced type of digital zoom) range and a 16MP backside illuminated (BSI) CMOS sensor. It records Full HD (1080p) video, even in low light, and reduces the danger of camera shake with the aid of the Lens-shift Vibration Reduction (VR) system. The L830 model’s intelligent features include Easy Auto mode and Smart Portrait System as well as 18 Scene modes and a selection of special effects. The model is available in black and red and has a retail price of $299.95.